The Most Famous Plum Cake

This famous cake recipe was first published in the New York Times in 1983 in the newspaper’s recipe column. Readers loved it so much that the paper continued to publish the recipe for six years. When the editors announced that they would stop printing it, they were flooded with complaints from outraged readers. The famous recipe was published one final time, with a reduced amount of sugar and a cheeky suggestion for readers to cut it out and laminate it for future use!)) 

• The original recipe called for large blue plums. This time, I used yellow plums, but you can also substitute any fresh fruit, such as peaches or apricots

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sugar (190 g)

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (113 g)

• 2 eggs

• 1 cup flour (125 g)

• 1 tsp baking powder

• Plums

• Lemon juice, brown sugar, and cinnamon, for sprinkling

• Powdered sugar, optional

Steps

1. Beat the butter and sugar together using a mixer

2. Continuing to beat, add the eggs

3. Add the flour and baking powder and mix until combined

4. Pour the batter into a baking dish and arrange the halved plums on top

5. Drizzle with lemon juice and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon

6. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 40–45 minutes

7. Once cooled, dust with powdered sugar, if desired